Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing system for processing job data stored in a hot folder, an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a storage medium storing a program.
Description of the Related Art
In recent years, the so-called print on demand (POD) market has been expanding. In POD, a digital image forming apparatus such as a digital copying machine and a digital multifunctional peripheral performs digital printing using electronic data. As a mechanism for readily outputting electronic data to a printing apparatus in digital printing, there is a well known method of storing, in a hot folder, job data such as a content file to be printed or a print setting file. An information processing apparatus having a hot folder includes a hot folder application for monitoring job data stored in the hot folder and controlling input of job data to a print control apparatus.
When an operator stores job data in the hot folder from the application of a self apparatus (such as a PC), he/she performs an operation of copying a file contained in the job data to the folder. At this time, a problem is experienced if the hot folder application determines that the job data has been stored in the hot folder, and the job data is sent to the print control apparatus before the copy operation of the job data is completed. More specifically, since job data for which a copy operation has not been completed is an incomplete file, it may be impossible to correctly process the incomplete file when it is sent to the print control apparatus, thereby causing an unexpected error or the like. The hot folder application, therefore, needs to determine whether the job data has been stored in the hot folder. Since, however, job data to be printed is not limited to one piece of data, job data must no simply be sent to the print control apparatus when a copy operation of one job data is completed. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-222661 describes a method in which a hot folder application is notified that job data has been stored when an application that has stored the job data in a hot folder changes the name of a job folder within the hot folder.
In the method of changing a job folder name by an application which has stored job data in a hot folder, it is impossible to change the job folder name while a large amount of job data is copied in the hot folder. The application which has stored the job data in the hot folder, therefore, needs to stand by until completion of the copy operation of the job data. Consequently, the application which has stored the job data in the hot folder cannot proceed to a next operation, thereby decreasing the operability of the user who uses the application. As an example, assume that the application is a document edit application. In this case, even if the user wants to edit a document, he/she cannot proceed to a document edit operation until the document edit application recognizes completion of a copy operation of the job data.